


the Final Sacrifice

by SwordDraconis113



Category: Lost Girl
Genre: F/F, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-05-09
Updated: 2012-05-31
Packaged: 2017-11-05 02:16:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/401350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SwordDraconis113/pseuds/SwordDraconis113
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With so few small words, Lauren turned from the Light Fae Doctor to a slave of the Dark, “Do we have a deal Doctor Lewis?”</p><p>“…these are my terms; you will not talk to the succubus, you will not tell her in any shape or form what you’ve done and of course, you will not tell anyone connected to the succubus. However, you will return home and collect any necessary equipment. A car will pick you up at sunrise and then I will allow you to see that the human is unharmed and returned to the succubus, so you know that I kept my side of the deal. Do you agreed to these terms?”<br/>“Yes.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 0. Sunshine

“Come now, dear,” Lauren looked up from the huddled position she was in, to see the Morrigan kneeling down in front of her, “There was no way to avoid this,” she whispered softly, brushing a strand of blonde behind Lauren’s ear. Lauren almost leant into the hand. It had been weeks since she had any kind of human contact and the gentle touch was enough for her to seek comfort within it.

For so long, she’d sat in the cold with her only solace being the warmth of her aching body. There was no bed, no blankets and no window; only the knowledge that she was alone, that she’d lost everything, even the warm glow of the sunshine. There was nothing for her.

“You promised,” she said hoarsely. Evony frowned and stood back up as she turned and shut the door to the cell. Slowly, she walked back and stared down at the shrunken figure.

“Did I now?” she said, “tell me dear, what _did_ I promise you?”

_Oh, but I can give you things,_ the words echoed in Lauren’s head, the voice smooth and promising, _things she can never give you._

Bo. 

Slowly, she tilted her head up, her brown eyes broken in the flickering lamp that the Morrigan had hung on the wall when she’d entered. The woman’s smile was callous, empty of everything that Lauren had slowly began to see etched in what had remained of Evony. Now, there was nothing there but a cold, hard mask.

“You promised you’d take better care of me than the other humans,” she began at last, answer swelling in her chest. “You promised me that if I didn’t leave, I would be great.” _Loved_. 

“And you were,” the Morrigan replied with a short laugh. There was nothing of _Evony_ left. The woman had returned to her confident, sadistic, pleased self. She was, after all, the leader of the dark fae and her self-assured image in that moment, reflected it.

“You promised me Bo.” 

There it was, at the mention of the succubus, pain flooded the woman’s face. “And have her you will,” she said turning away. A pause followed the words and slowly the Morrigan lifted her head, a slow grin pooling over her features, “she arranged a meeting with me. It seems like she heard about your predicament,” the Morrigan turned back, grinning and masked, “foolishly, she believed that she can still save you.”

“Is she...?”

“Oh no dear, I said you could have her, didn’t mean that I would let you see her.” Reaching into the breast pocket of the tailored black coat, she pulled out a letter. “This one is all yours. I promise.” Lauren shivered at the words.

The letter dropped to the floor, sealed and unopened. Lauren scrambled for it, tearing it open eagerly. Fingers shaking, she ran her eyes over the single line and felt her body go loose at the words.

_I’m coming for you._

The Morrigan left after that and Lauren waited. But she didn’t come. 

 


	2. 1. Every You, Every Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't easy saying the words, but they needed to be said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to the amazing Dee for Betaing this and the previous. Couldn't be half as good without you!

Chapter One:  
Every You, Every Me  
-  
I always find someone to bruise   
and leave behind

The Dal was booming with a ‘we survived!’ party (a banner was hung from the ceiling saying those exact words) when Lauren arrived. Dressed in her brown leather jacket, a simple grey shirt and her jeans, she easily felt comfortable moving through the crowd, towards where she suspected Bo would be, drinking with who she was sure were Kenzi, Hale and Dyson.

Coming up beside the succubus, she smiled, “hey stranger.” 

“Lauren!” Bo said happily, almost choking on the shot she’d just downed with her best friend. “You made it,” there was no doubt that Bo was pleased to see her as she held strong eye contact and grinned just wide enough to show off her gleaming white teeth.

“Celebrating a victory over the Garuda? I could make time,” she replied smoothly. Bo laughed, grinning at her.

“I’m glad you’re here.” 

A pause followed the words as Lauren breathed out and held Bo’s eye contact a little too long. Wanting desire coursed through her as she stared at Bo’s lips and then down the black silk shirt and leather jacket. Pulling back slightly, she smiled and looked at the shot glass glasses on the bench. Only two out of the four shots in front of Bo had been drunk. Kenzi herself had a few more shots in front of her, and was beginning to show just how much she’d drunk as she clung to Hale to stop from falling off the stool 

“Do you mind?” Lauren asked, pointing to one of the two remainder.

Bo blinked before shaking her head, “No, of course not. Go for it.” Picking up the shot, she caught Bo’s eyes again. “Count of three,” she told her, clutching the last one on the table.

“One,” Lauren whispered, smiling despite herself.

“Two.”

“Three!” Kenzi piped up. Immediately, all three of them took a shot. The liquor was swallowed quickly and burned hotly down their throats. Lauren found comfort within the alcohol as it soothed the nerves that spun tightly inside of her. In all honesty, she’d came for a specific reason and was glad there was alcohol to begin with.

“So,” Bo began, spinning on the stool so she directly faced Lauren, “you’ve been avoiding me.” Lauren smiled, ducking her head out of embarrassment.

“Not on purpose, I’ve been busy.”

“Still doesn’t change the fact that whenever I come see you, you’re somewhere else. I left three messages!” Lauren laughed before sighing. It was true, she’d been avoiding Bo, mostly accidental, but the phone messages she couldn’t really deny. In truth, she’d sat on the couch with her phone in hand, thinking of just how to call back without splurging out something she might regret.

“Well I’m here, so you can talk to me now before I start avoiding you again.”

“Funny,” Bo said, before biting her lip. “Actually, I’ve been meaning to talk to you, honestly. There’s-” before Bo could continue, she was grabbed out of her seat and suddenly thrown into a crowd of people. In the mass, Lauren could hear, “Hey!” “What the-” “I was just in the middle of-” “oh thanks,” before the sound of people chatting and singing, overwhelming whatever Bo had to say.

Turning back away from the crowd, knowing the crowd would keep her busy for a few minutes, Lauren came to see Trick. “Hey,” she smiled.

“Quite the party,” Trick said to her, before adjusting himself back as the bartender, “can I get you anything?”

“Not what’s on tap, I don’t want to go through that experience ever again,” she smiled, “I’ll just have whatever you can get me.” Trick smiled at her, before easily mixing her a drink and passing it back over to her.

“You know Lauren,” he said, leaning over the bar, “Bo would probably run with you if you asked.”

Lauren’ smile slipped as she looked at Trick, she should have known how obvious it was, it wasn’t as though she’d ever been subtle with how she looked at Bo. “I wouldn’t do that to her,” she replied, “this is her family, all of you. She belongs here,” turning, she looked back at the crowd as Bo was suddenly lifted up onto the shoulders of some over-appreciative fae. “I would never ask her to choose between me and that, it’s not fair on her.”

Trick smiled, “I’m glad that you said that.” 

When Lauren turned back to ask what he meant, Trick had moved on to serve other patrons. Lauren shifted her attention to her right, mildly amused as she watched Kenzi attempt to balance a shot glass on her nose as Hale outright laughed at her. As she shifted her eyes further along the bar, she came to Dyson, sitting with an ale in his hand, as he looked out at Bo. 

Bo and Dyson, she noted with a heavy sigh. Bo may not have noticed, but Lauren had. The looks and stares were back, proving that somehow Dyson had managed to retrieve his love for Bo back. The moment she’d known, it began to eat at Lauren. She would never ask Bo to be monogamous, that was impossible, but she would ask that Bo loved her truly, solely. 

It would kill her if she knew that she shared both her bed and love with someone else, it had consumed her with jealously before and there’d been nothing official between her and Bo back then. But...things had changed.

Nadia had died, and though Lauren ached desperately over her, finding herself unsure of what to do with the clothes, the camera equipment and everything else that reminded her of Nadia, she knew in her heart that her feelings for Bo had grown to such an extent that there was little doubt in her mind, in how exactly she felt.

“Dance with me,” suddenly Lauren was tugged onto her feet and pulled into Bo’s arms.

“Wha-”

“Dance with me,” Bo said again, already leading Lauren to the dance floor.

“No, Bo, no -- I don’t dance, I-” but it was too late, Bo had pulled her into the centre of the dancefloor, wrapping her tightly in her arms, and there they were. The two of them, spinning and ridiculously dancing to traditional Irish music.

“See, you can dance,” Bo laughed. 

Lauren couldn’t help but laugh as they joined hands and spun again. When she pulled Bo, back into her arms, she watched the dark hair flow, and noticed how Bo’s cheeks reddened with the movement. The dark eyes were alight, and a large, amazing smile was plastered across the succubus’ face.

Without much needed consideration, she grabbed her and kissed her lips, listening as the dancers around them elicited a loud cheer as though something much grander had happened rather than Lauren being overcome with emotion because of how beautiful Bo was. 

“What was that for?” Bo asked breathlessly when she pulled back.

Lauren couldn’t help but smile shyly at her, “do we need a reason to kiss? Because sometimes I think no reason at all is just as good as any reason,” Lauren could hear herself beginning to ramble, but the words were pouring out and she couldn’t help it, “but I mean if you want to get into detail, I guess it’s because being with you causes brain-” Bo grabbed her and kissed her again.

“We don’t need a reason to kiss, Lauren, I was just surprised.”

Lauren blushed, feeling the taste of Bo on her lips and tongue. “Sorry, sometimes when I get nervous, I-”

“I know,” Bo said, shaking her head with laughter, “and I love it about you.” Lauren’s face paused at her words, slowly she flicked between Bo’s eyes, remembering why she came to the Dal in the first place. In that moment, the Dal felt as though they were the only two standing, still holding onto each other. Her heartbeat sped up as she felt her nerves spark up again, inside of her. 

The words were on the tip of her tongue, she just needed to say them.

“Bo,” she whispered.

Sensing what was about to happen, Bo forced on a smile and spun Lauren again, deflecting what was about to happen. “Come on, let loose for tonight, please,” she pleaded as they returned to dancing, “after all, I’m the guest of honor,” she joked.

Lauren smiled and nodded, “okay” she promised.

“Good.” 

When the song was over, before Bo could drag her into another, Lauren found her way back to the bar. Trick, busy with other patrons, barely noticed her, whilst Kenzi already had managed to balance three shot glasses, piled onto each other, upon her forehead. She was completely oblivious to Lauren standing next to her, however, Dyson wasn’t.

“Hey,” he said in greeting.

“Hey,” she returned politely. Lauren never quite knew where she stood with Dyson. There were times in the past where she’d known his discomfort and dislike for her purely because he made no attempt to hide it. Now though, with everything they’d been through, especially with Ciara and Nadia, Lauren felt that was more to their relationship that made it impossible to define exactly what their relationship was.

They both knew each other too well to be acquaintances, but they weren’t quite friendly enough to be on friendship -- though most certainly, Lauren was sure that it bordered on it, with jealousy being the only thing that stopped them.

Without their love and history with Bo, Lauren was almost certain that they could have been friends. But there was no way to tell.

“Have you told her?” she asked. He looked at her and she ducked her head uncomfortably, “I’m not blind,” she said when she finally looked back up with a raised eyebrow. “I do have good eyesight you know.”

Dyson laughed, “I wouldn’t. However if your eyesight is anything like Kenzi’s-”

Lauren grinned, “It’s not. She needs glasses, but she’s too stubborn.”

“Iamnot,” Kenzi mumbled. The words caused the shot glasses to topple and before Kenzi’s slowed reaction could stop them, they fell and smashed onto the floor. Trick turned and immediately threw his eyes onto Kenzi. “Her fault,” she said pointing at Lauren.

Passively Lauren turned back away from Kenzi to face Dyson again, “you didn’t answer my question,” she said as Trick handed both Hale and Kenzi a broom and shovel each. When Hale complained loudly, Trick reminded him who had been paying for Kenzi’s drinks that night.

“I tried,” Dyson said after a pause. “She...was preoccupied.” 

Slowly, both their eyes went to Bo, watching as she danced in the middle of the dance floor before smiling back up when she sensed their eyes. Lauren felt her body go hollow as she realized that Bo didn’t know. Just as she believed that Bo had maybe, just possibly chosen her...she hadn’t. Not really. Ignorance was bliss after all.

“You shouldn’t do it tonight.”

“Why? Because you’re finally going to tell her how you feel?” Lauren dropped her eyes away at the passive-aggressive behavior to find herself looking out at the crowd.

“She’s been deflecting me all tonight, I don’t think she wants me to,” Lauren turned her eyes away from Bo and turned back to face the bar, “But she loves you, she’s always loved you,” Lauren informed him, sounding more than a little self-conscious to anyone who knew her. 

“You don’t know that.”

“I do. It’s you and it’s Bo, she will always love you even if she doesn’t realize it,” tossing her head back she forced a smile. “I think I’ll go for the night, I’m tired.” Lauren went to move for the door, when Dyson grabbed her wrist.

“You know Lauren, the door’s still open. You could leave before you’re given to a new Ash.” Lauren’s expression twisted in a bittersweet smirk as she found herself, once again resenting Dyson. Her chest swelled with the need to tell him that she preferred him being loveless, but instead she dropped her shoulders and placed a well-designed mask on her face.

“I’m many things, Dyson, but I’m not the type of person to run away because I’m scared Bo doesn’t share my feelings,” she said softly, “and I wish you wouldn’t think of me as such.” With that, she ripped her hand out of his grasp and walked away. 

Bo, seeing only the last part of the conversation stormed up to Dyson. Lauren didn’t hear what she said, but by the finger jabbing and obvious anger, Lauren was sure that it wasn’t good. Quickly she left, pulling herself around the corner as she walked the rest of the way home. A part of her hoped that Bo would run after her, drag her back to the party or somewhere else, but she didn’t. 

Instead, Lauren walked the distance to her home, going through her mind what she should have done. 

It would have been so easy to just grab Bo by the shoulders, kiss her and say I love you, but she couldn’t. She wanted to talk, wanted to explain that she not only loved Bo, but that she wanted her completely. Regardless of the fact that she couldn’t have Bo’s body entirely to herself, she wanted her heart. 

Was that so selfish?

But she was too afraid that Bo would say no, and it was easier to just keep quiet than risk her heart breaking. She didn’t want to lose Bo, not again.

Perhaps it was selfish and even unkind of her to think like that, she wasn’t sure. She wasn’t sure of anything with Bo any more. Every you, every me, she mused quietly to herself. There were so many different parts of themselves that they’d tried to convey to each other. Too many. Sometimes Lauren wondered just how real all those parts were. She’d never felt this complicated before Bo, but she was and Bo wasn’t any different. Perhaps Bo made her see herself entirely, or maybe she just wanted to be more for her.

Another night, she thought quietly, I’m too tired now.


	3. 2. What Have I Done

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lauren's tired and Bo's isn't following her well constructed plan

_all good things now come from you,_

_I hope you feel the way I do_

 

 

She spent lying in her very empty and unusually uncomfortable bed. Lauren decided there was nothing worse than having a good long sleep and waking up just as exhausted as when you went to bed. It seemed easier to be awake if you _knew_ you were sleep deprived. Especially if you had stayed up all hours, surviving only on caffeine and sheer will.

But knowing that you should be well rested, and waking up deeply asleep, felt like it was killing a part of you, as well as it ruining the rest of the day. Lauren sighed. It also made it almost impossible to climb out of the bed and be active.

She lay underneath the sheets and blankets for a while longer, looking up at the ceiling with her eyes flicking to the clock at every odd moment. It would eventually get to a time where there was no possibility in procrastinating the inevitable. Eventually she would have to get out of bed and begin her daily ritual.

Ten minutes passed all too quickly.

Without care, Lauren pushed herself to climb out of bed, make herself some coffee and have a shower to wake up some part of her, believing that it was dread that weighed down her body.

But as she had her second cup of coffee, dressed and got ready to leave, she knew it was more than just dread. She hadn’t really slept, just held herself on the brink of sleep, tossing and turning as she thought about Bo. Who knew a single woman could have such an affect on her? Especially at this age. It was like being a teenager again.

Granted, Bo wasn’t just _a_ woman, she was a succubus and she did make Lauren feel much younger than she was. The woman caused her to feel alive whenever they stood in the same room, regardless of anything that was happening. 

Shaking her head, she decided that today she needed to keep busy. No calling Bo and finding herself too dumb to speak, or worse, too overwhelmed with words that she would ramble and tie herself up in knots. She would call later, to assure Bo that she’d left the night before because she was tired, and to not take it personally. 

But that would happen later, much later, when her mind would be filled with so much information from her day of work that her thoughts would barely be able to string more than a few simple sentence together. 

And hopefully those sentences would be: _Bo, hey, about last night -- I was really tired after work and everything else. I honestly didn’t mean to leave on such short notice. But We should catch up, okay? I’ll talk to you later then._

Satisfied with the plan, she climbed into her car and filled her mind with what she needed to do in the lab. But as pleased as she was that she made up her mind with what she was to do/needed to be done, she didn’t take into consideration one vital flaw in her plan: Bo didn’t follow plans, least of all, **hers**. She didn’t even follow a well constructed script that Lauren would carefully plan out in her head before she went to talk to her.

So when she finally arrived at the clinic, Bo was there, not following her plan and most definitely not following the script Lauren had plotted for the phone call later that evening. “Doctor Lewis,” the succubus teased, leaning against a metal bench.

“Are you okay?” Lauren asked immediately, placing her laptop down onto the closest desk before walking over to Bo. Her eyes ran all over the woman’s body, scanning it for anything that might suggest harm done, but eventually it was obvious that Bo was in no danger and had been waiting for her to arrive for a whole other reason. 

“I’m fine.” Bo smiled at her, her fingers twitching as she hesitated over/about grabbing Lauren’s hand. There were moments when things were easy between them and just felt natural. Then there were moments like this when _easy_ couldn’t be used in any shape or form. 

Lauren felt her shoulder relax at the knowledge of no imminent crisis. Her body though, still remained extraordinarily tense. With Bo here, there were a lot of feelings that ran through her, along with thoughts that followed these emotions. Between those feelings, her thoughts and the two of them standing across from each other quite awkwardly, the room’s tension was thick enough that it needed Bo’s sword through it.

“So, how are you?” Bo asked awkwardly. They stared at each other before laughing. Of all the things to ask, _that_ , along with the weather, showed exactly how awkward the two of them felt in the room.

“I’m well,” Lauren replied as the tension appeared to simmer. “I’m sorry for leaving last night, I was-”

“Whatever Dyson said, it doesn’t matter,” Bo jumped in, “I mean, he can be an ass sometimes -- I think it’s to do with him being such an alpha… But it doesn’t matter, okay?” 

Lauren couldn’t help but feel something warm blossom within her at Bo’s words. The care Bo showed for her in that moment was something Lauren felt she should treasure. Mostly because she couldn’t help but note that when things appeared to be going well for them, something terrible happened and then they weren’t talking to each other.

Usually it was her fault for not being upfront about personal facts and Bo’s stubbornness that kept them apart, but the statistics remained strong and against them.

Breathing in, Lauren smiled, “I wanted to talk to you last night, but when I tried, you seemed to avoid it.”

Bo dropped her eyes, her lips pulling in into a defensive, mask of professionalism. “I...I was hoping we could avoid this conversation for as long as possible,” Bo replied. And there it was. The thing that would pull them apart yet again. Lauren flinched before turning away to avoid herself looking painfully at Bo. She hadn’t expected such a brutal response from the woman.

“Okay,” she managed, “I...” she shook her head. “It doesn’t matter then.” Instantly she snapped a mask over her expression and watched as Bo’s face contorted into mass confusion.

“Lauren...?” she whispered.

“It’s okay, Bo,” the doctor reassured, more to herself than to the woman staring at her, “we can just continue and...” she trailed off and turned around, feeling her hands twitch with the need to busy themselves. She didn’t know where the two of them could go from this. If Bo didn’t want to talk then how long could they carry on, dodging around the topic of how they felt? Because as much as she loved Bo, and it ached sometimes how much she loved her, Lauren knew that she deserved more than unrequited love.

All the courage to say those words was lost. She was too scared to lose Bo. Even though the idea of loving and not being loved hurt more than she currently could bear, the thought of losing Bo completely, watching her fall in love with someone else, or return to Dyson, hurt more. _What have I done to fall so hard for you?_ she asked herself, searching for an answer.

“Lauren,” Bo said, grabbing her shoulder, forcing her back. “Look, I know that you have to leave and I know that you’ll want to do it soon, but can we just wait on this conversation? I mean, I don’t know...I know what I want but...I don’t, you know?”

Frowning, Lauren looked Bo over, “what are you talking about?” she asked softly.

“I mean, if you were to ask, I think I would and Kenzi and I discussed what would happen and she’d follow me and I know that-”

“Bo,” Lauren stepped closer, almost ready to reach out and pull the woman to her. The pain in her body had softened immensely and began to instead swell with hope. Quietly, staring at the worried expression on the succubus, she wondered if what Bo had wanted to avoid talking about wasn’t what _she_ was wanting to talk about. “Bo, do you...?”

Bursting at the question, Bo rushed, “Remember; I promised that it was you and me, and I meant that, I do, I honestly do, but you know this is the first place that I’ve been living at for so long and it’s my home and-” Lauren felt herself grin, unable to help herself as she grabbed Bo’s body and pulled her into a deep kiss. Breathlessly, Bo went still with shock, unsure of what was happening before she lifted her hands to Lauren’s face and returned the kiss. 

It didn’t matter _why_ it was happening… just that it was.

When Lauren pulled back, grinning freely at her, Bo finally asked, “What just happened?” There was no denying how deeply confused she was. After all, before Lauren had looked like she was ready to kick Bo out and now she was looking like she wanted her on the bench with no clothes on. Not that she minded the last part, at all, just that the flick was confusing.

“I’m not leaving, Bo.” 

“What?”

“I’m not leaving and I’m not asking you to run away with me.”

“Then what-”

“Shh. Can we just...not, right now. I was going insane thinking that you didn’t want to talk to me for an entirely different reason,” she explained briefly, “but it doesn’t matter.” Kissing her again, she pushed Bo back against the bench. Everything was just better in that moment and she didn’t want to talk in the least.

Feverish with emotions, she ran her hands down Bo’s body, slipping down to her waist. There were things that should be said, that she wanted and needed to say to Bo, but all that could wait. Hungrily she began trailing her lips down the succubus’s throat and felt as the brunette moaned beneath her mouth, “ _God_ , I must have done something right,” Bo whispered as her eyes rolled back. 

“Yes,” Lauren breathed out hotly before she ran her teeth over Bo’s neck, feeling the succubus’ pulse against her tongue. “You have no idea how much it meant to me, when you said that.” She felt Bo force her jacket off and drop it down beside them. Pulling back, Lauren lifted Bo onto the bench before she grabbed the woman’s lips again and kissed them furiously.

Bo fingers trailed down Lauren’s arms as her own jacket was removed and dropped beside the brown one. It wasn’t until Lauren climbed on top and straddled Bo that the succubus realized just how _thankful_ Lauren was for what she said.

Pulling away from the blonde’s lips as she ran her hands up the her shirt, Bo inquired, “Just what did you think I was going to say?”

“Bo,” Lauren said pulling away. Immediately Bo wanted the lips to go back to kissing down her body as Lauren’s hand began working the black shirt off. “Can we talk about this later?” the words were said so gently that Bo immediately felt like she was pushing Lauren again.

“No, yeah, sure. That’s-- _oh_ ,” she sighed as Lauren’s hands immediately tugged at her pants. “I should admit that I want to runaway with you more often,” Bo said as she rolled back and arched her hips, waiting and wanting for Lauren to strip her bare so she could return the favor. 

Lauren didn’t hear what Bo had said; too distracted with what she was going to do to the woman beneath her once she got the damned clothes off. Burying her fingers under the seams, she gave the pants a tug and was in return, rewarded with the sight of Bo’s bare thighs. Satisfied, she brushed her fingertips over the succubus’ hips and watched the skin shiver welcomingly at her touch.

“Lauren,” Bo almost moaned out, caught off guard by one of Lauren’s hands rising very quickly up her shirt, “I hate to ask,” she said before inhaling a sharp gasp as Lauren lips trailed over her ribs.

“ _Mm?”_ Lauren questioned, the sound humming through Bo’s body as her tongue continued to dart out over the taught muscles of the succubus’ abdomen.

Bo took a second to compose her thoughts, hoping the answer wasn’t what she suspected, “how-how long until other people start, _ah_ , coming into the lab?” she asked in the middle of deep moan as Lauren began to tug as the bands of her underwear. The blonde paused at the question and Bo almost wished she didn’t ask if the answer hadn’t been so necessary.

Pulling her head away, Lauren looked at the time and dropped her head with a sigh, “five minutes,” she breathed out. Pulling away, she climbed off and immediately blushed, “I ah...sorry, I didn’t mean to-”

“Don’t apologize,” Bo said earnestly, “Believe me,” she chuckled, “you have no reason to apologize. Maybe we could find a utility closet together and continue where we left off?” Lauren hummed and nodded vaguely, feeling embarrassed about being overcome by desire. “So ah...what are you doing tonight?” Bo asked as she bit her lip briefly and redid the buttons of her pants back up. 

“Tonight?” Lauren asked, her mind staggered with the haze of what just happened. “I-ah, working I think?” she said before nodding, “I’m getting everything ready for when the new Ash comes.”

“Oh, okay, of course,” Bo laughed. “You’re busy.”

Lauren’s smile faded at the soft tone of hurt that etched over Bo’s face, “you should come over tonight,” she said without thinking. Realizing what she said, she quickly added, “for dinner.”

“For dinner?” Bo echoed.

“Yes,” she concluded, quietly adding to herself _but I won’t be hungry._

“I’d love to.”


	4. 3. Wonderland

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dinner date doesn't exactly go according to plan.

_I don’t believe in fairytales_

_but I believe in you and me_

 

Dinner plans fell through and not in the way that either of them wanted. At five, Bo had rung up and left Lauren a message on her voicemail. _“Hey, really sorry but I might not make dinner. I got a lead on this new case Hale gave me. I’ll call you if I can make it but otherwise, don’t wait up -- and I’m really sorry believe me, I am, but I promise to make it up to you when I get the chance. Talk to you later_.”

In the end, Bo didn’t call back and Lauren had gone to bed sexually frustrated and worried for Bo. It was the not calling back part that bothered her. Sick with worry, she tossed and turned until she finally fell asleep, but it didn’t last long.

At two a.m. Lauren was deep in sleep with a dream that involved her eating cereal at a very large table filled with Easter eggs. Just as she was about to reach forward and have one of the milk chocolate eggs, there was a desperate knock at her door.

It took a few moments to realize that the knock wasn’t happening in her Wonderland-stylized dream.

The dream melted away and slowly she opened her eyes, listening for the knock. Hearing it again, she grabbed her bathrobe and stumbled down the stairs half asleep. Her mind briefly wondered who was calling at that hour, vaguely aware that it was probably an emergency. 

Finally, as she pulled the robe tighter to her body against the cold, Lauren opened the door.

The last thing she had expected to answer to was Bo. The succubus was covered in blood, with bruises forming, hanging on the doorway as she held onto her dislocated arm. She’d never seen Bo so badly damaged before and it was a nasty shock to have the woman grin at her red stained teeth and ask, “hey Doc, got a minute?”

Lauren, still incoherent from just waking up, stepped back and allowed Bo to enter as she stared dumbstruck at the woman. Finally her thoughts began to connect, “Bo-”

“Not here to feed,” Bo quickly jumped in at Lauren’s look. 

Lauren wasn’t for healing and most definitely not for food. She could see that in Bo’s eyes that the idea of feeding from her went against everything she believed in. “Don’t worry, most of it’s not my blood,” she said as Lauren reached out to touch her. “I ah, actually came here because I needed you to, um,” she looked at her arm, “and I wouldn’t mind a shower either, the shower back at home is having pipe issues. The bath works, but..,”

“No, of course,” Lauren said as she finally stepped forward to help Bo stand. “This is going to hurt,” she said softly as she grabbed the dislocated arm, barely giving Bo time to prepare herself before she turned and pushed the arm back into its socket. Instantly, Bo cried out. Staggering back, Lauren wrapped an arm around Bo’s waist to steady her. “Maybe I should have given you painkillers first,” she said under her breath.

In her defense, she was still half asleep.

“No,” Bo laughed, “pain is good. Reminds me that I’m alive.” Lauren frowned and shook her head.

“I’ll get you a towel and some clothes,” she informed her before turning away to climb up the stairs. When Bo turned to protest, she’d already disappeared towards her linen closet, grabbing a fresh towel. There was a quiet moment held in the living room’s space before Lauren reappeared halfway down the stairs, only to find that it was empty.

“Bo?” She called out, worried that the succubus had left before she could check over the wounds. She was silenced when the sounds of pipes from her bathroom rang from upstairs. Smiling, she re-climbed the steps and headed into her room to collect clothes for Bo to wear. 

It wasn’t the night she had planned for her and Bo, but at least she’d been able to see her.

Opening the bathroom door, she placed a towel next to the shower over the top of the clothes she’d picked out (regardless that her and Bo had a very different style, she was sure the succubus wouldn’t mind the grey shirt and blue, loose fitting cotton pants). Turning around, she went to pick up Bo’s clothes and take them to her washing machine when the shower curtain was pulled back.

“Care to join me?” Bo asked her, poking her head and shoulder around the curtain. Water rushed down over her body, her long thick hair pulled over her shoulders and sticking to her back as Bo ran her fingers through the strands. Lauren’s heart sped up as she took in a strong breath at the view.

The very sight of a wet Bo, standing naked in her shower, silhouetted behind the cream curtain was sending strong jolts of deep desires that ran through to her very core and thrummed to her fingers and toes. Each wave of lust kept tempting her to take that step forward and join. But as much as she _did_ want to step into the shower with Bo, she didn’t want to take advantage of her in such a state.  

After all, the woman had only justbeen in a fight; adrenaline, noradrenaline and cortisol have been released into her bloodstream. The result of all that happening is...well, what was happening between the two of them now.

But a persistent part of Lauren perked up, “ _you were going to anyway,” a voice nagged from_ the back of her head. Not the shower part, but the long night of much wanted sex with Bo. For a while the two of them had been dancing around each other, craving it, but never making that step forward, until yesterday morning.

Bo cocked her head, sensing what was happening, and not liking how close Lauren seemed to be stepping back away from her, “I’ve got some bruises that need some tending to,” she tempted Lauren further as she placed a hand onto her hip, “I could really use a hand.”

The doctor stared at her for a few more minutes, watching Bo side step just enough to give her a view of what she would be missing.  Finally as Bo ran her teeth over her bottom lip, temptation won over and Lauren gave in. Removing her clothes carefully, she climbed into the shower with Bo. “You know,” she said as Bo immediately wrapped her arms around her waist and pulled her closer, “we _were_ supposed to have dinner first.”

Bo grinned, sliding her hands up as she traced her thumbs over Lauren’s breasts, “we’ve never gone according to plan. I like that about us.” _It certainly made things interesting_ , Lauren thought as she rolled her head back, shivering as she felt the water rush over her body.

Bo’s hands slid further up before curving around her breasts and sliding back down to rest on her hips. Lauren sighed softly at the feeling of Bo’s hands. She’d missed them, she’d missed all of Bo, but a tiny part of her missed her hands the most. If there was anything Lauren thought and dreamed about, it was Bo’s hands. 

There was a gap between them that held a pause as they looked into each other’s eyes. Finally, Bo stepped forward, removing the gap by pushing her body up against Lauren’s and kissing her lips tentatively at first. It was slow, at first. Their mouths parted, tongues pressing forward as they reached up and placed arms around another. 

Lauren felt herself sigh blissfully as she gave into Bo. The feeling of their bodies sliding against each other as she ran her hands up the succubus’s back, was intoxicating.

“I’m glad you came over,” Lauren whispered as the woman pulled away and traced her lips down the doctor’s jaw.

“So am I,” Bo returned briefly, lifting her head back up to kiss her lips again. “ _God_ Lauren. I’ve missed you.” Stumbling back into the wall, Lauren dragged Bo closer into her as she became impatient with what was happening. Running her fingers over Bo’s shoulder and down her arm, she grabbed at the succubus’ entirely skilled hand and dragged it between her legs.  

When Bo chuckled at her impatience and went to move her hand away, Lauren broke from the kiss, “I haven’t been with anyone but myself since...” Lauren told her, holding Bo’s eyes steady, “I want this. I want _you_.” 

There was a pause before Bo pushed forward, her hand twisting in Lauren to entwine their fingers briefly. “I’m sorry,” she uttered. 

“I know.”

Slowly, she ran her thumb along the back of Lauren’s hand before she kissed Lauren’s lips tenderly. Pulling back, she smiled and then kissed the corner of the lips and down the doctor’s jawline, her kisses growing stronger and quick. “Anyone but yourself?” she questioned against the doctor’s neck as she left love bites that would last for _days_ down her shoulder, towards her breasts. “I would like to see that.” Lauren laughed, lifting her head up to look at her white ceiling before she sighed into the kiss. _Yes_ , she thought as Bo gave into her wish, her hips rolling, arching her body, pressing harder against the wall.

“Maybe later,” she breathed out finally as she remembered to speak.

Eventually, when later arrived, Bo found herself in Lauren’s bed curled up against her as the doctor deeply slept. There were things about Lauren sleeping that caused Bo to hold out on slipping into it herself. Seeing Lauren completely relaxed, her expression softened, was always calming. 

Slowly, she reached out with a hand and ran her fingers over Lauren’s arm tracing a thin pattern over the skin just to remind herself that Lauren was really there, nothing was happening to ruin that moment, before she pulled up the blankets over both their bodies. 

“Are you going?” Lauren asked, rolling over to face her. Sleepily, she blinked at Bo and yawned before burying her head back into the pillow.

“No, I’m not going anywhere. You just looked cold,” she whispered as she fixed the blankets and curled up closer to Lauren. “I’m staying the night and you can’t do a thing about it,” she teased.

“Good,” Lauren whispered. She leant forward and gently pressed her head against Bo’s shoulder before wrapping an arm around the woman’s body. “I should wash your clothes so you have something to wear tomorrow,” she muttered as her thoughts began to draw back to earlier that night, “but I don’t want to leave the bed.”

“The bed _is_ warm and comfy,” Bo added in an attempt to persuade her to stay. She didn’t want Lauren to leave. She wanted them both to stay in the bed, just the two of them and hold onto this moment. Especially because right now, the doctor was being completely adorable by scrunching her forehead in thought as she peeked back up to look at Bo.

“And you’ll have to stay naked tomorrow,” Lauren continued, yawning again, “I like this idea.”

“If I’m naked tomorrow, you have to be as well.”

“Oh no, you’re not leaving this spot,” Lauren said as she sat up on one arm and looked down at Bo, “You have to stay in bed, doctor’s orders.” When Bo went to protest, she threw a mock-glare, “No excuses.”

“Well I guess it’s hard to argue with doctor’s orders,” she said smiling. 

Lauren grinned back, laughing lightly before she lifted the blankets up to see beneath them, “how bad are the bruises?” she asked. Playing along, Bo stretched and laid back, looking down where Lauren’s eyes currently rested on her skin.

“Oh you know, they might need some more tending,” she said playfully. Lauren edged the blankets down Bo’s skin and ran her fingers over them. Instantly her expression shifted from playful, to doctor and Bo became confused as she contemplated over if Playful Lauren or Doctor Lauren was more fun for her.

“This one looks pretty bad,” she said, running her fingers over the outside of Bo’s thigh, “what were you doing?” She lifted her head up, concerned over Bo’s wellbeing before she looked back down at the range of cuts and bruises over the woman’s body. 

Regardless of everything, Bo couldn’t help but sigh into the light touches. “Hale gave me a case,” she said softly, almost releasing a disappointed sound as Lauren fingers pulled away and curled back close to her own body. The doctor was paying attention to the story and as much as Bo appreciated that, she could still listen and run her fingers over her skin at the same time.

As if hearing her thoughts, Lauren’s eyes went to another bruise and slowly traced over that. “What was the case?” she urged on.

“Fae drug.” At Lauren’s look, she elaborated, “Some type of fae, I don’t know what, were using this drug to feed off humans or something. They were experimenting when I got there. These humans were locked in cages and injected with a drug that would make them crazy-addicted to it. It was like, the more they consumed the more they released something the fae would feed off. There was this one guy who was in a pit with others, fighting as the fae around them fed off all his anger and bloodlust,” Bo shivered at the memory.

Again, Lauren’s fingers pulled away from her, but this time Bo protested, telling her that it was comforting. Only then did Lauren go back to tracing patterns on Bo’s skin lazily, before she nodded at her to continue the tale.

“After that I ran into the dealer.”

“Is that when you dislocated your arm?” Lauren broke in.

“Yeah, he tossed me into a wall and ran off. But we scared off some of the other fae, too. Finally, Hale and Dyson took the drugs that we found-”

“Dyson was there?” Lauren asked as her fingers stopped moving.

“Yeah, he and Hale were my back-up I guess. Or I was their’s really,” she laughed. 

“So...why didn’t you, ah, feed off him...Dyson?”

Bo frowned, “It never occurred to me,” she admitted honestly, “I mean, I was hurt and everything but it wasn’t that bad, and my first thought was that I’d promised to see you. I kind of left them when they began packing up all the drugs. It was all over by then and they didn’t need me.”

At those words Lauren’s body seemed to heat up entirely. If there ever was a moment to say _I love you_ , it was then. Instead she smiled, grinning down at Bo and watched as the moment slid by, telling herself that there will be another. 

“Did you want to sleep now?” Bo asked.

“No,” she replied with ease before she leaned down and kissed Bo’s lips, as she draped her body over the succubus.

From Lauren’s bathroom, Bo’s phone went off loudly against the tiles.

“Ignore it,” Lauren said, kissing her lips, when Bo made a move to slide out of the bed.

“Mm, keep kissing me like that and I won’t ever leave.” 


	5. 4. Silver Lining

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was always something that took it away from them.

when the world surrounds you,   
I’ll make it go away

 

Lauren stared at the clock, it wasn’t even ten in the morning yet and already it’d begun. The two of them really did seem to be cursed for some disaster. Turning back, she watched as Bo scrambled in the clothes covered in blood, glaring at the wall with a phone in one hand and her other tightly tugging down her shirt. 

She probably would have found the situation funny, even kind of sexy if Bo’s anger at whoever was on the other line, didn’t appear so distraught. 

From the bed, Lauren sat up, covering herself in her sheets as she did. She’d woken moments before when Bo had begun shouting at the phone as she re-entered the bedroom. The doctor hadn’t heard her leave the bed. 

“Start from the beginning,” Bo demanded, her free hand tugging on her boot. At some point, Bo had gone to the bathroom and grabbed her clothes and the phone. Lauren wasn’t sure why she returned back to the bedroom. Habit, maybe? But something about the way Bo kept looking over her shoulder, towards Lauren’s figure, said otherwise.

Lauren curled up tighter in the sheets, Bo was either ignoring her or wasn’t aware that she was awake. Whatever the reason, she was sure that it had to do with what was happening.

“What do you mean by that?” Bo shouted, her knuckles going white with grip on her phone. “How can she be missing? She was at the Dal!” There was a pause and as Bo’s expression grew tighter, Lauren’s stomach twisted nervously. Quickly, she moved closer to Bo and reached out to touch her shoulder. Bo jumped three feet before turning back to Lauren, apology written over her features.

She hadn’t noticed Lauren waking up.

“It’s okay,” she affirmed, grabbing Bo’s free hand and squeezing it tightly. At the contact, Bo’s body visibly relaxed enough that she stopped looking ready to throw the phone at Lauren’s bedroom wall.

The relief didn’t last long and too soon, Bo ripped her hand away to switch the phone to that hand. “How long? Why didn’t you call me?” 

Lauren’s expression froze as she remembered the night before. Whoever it was, had probably been ringing all the night and the two of them had ignored the call and missed the rest of them.

“Eight times?” Bo dropped her head, “Right. Sorry, I didn’t realize...if I’d known I would have -- it’s none of your business what I was doing!” With those words, Lauren was sure she knew who was on the other line. Anyone else would have received some sort of respect from her or a vague answer. Dyson was the only person to whom Bo ever spoke like that.

“Bo, what’s happening?” Without replying to the receiver, Bo glared at it and switched it off, pushing the phone into her jacket pocket before shrugging the leather on. Flicking her hair out, she turned to glare in Lauren’s direction. The moment she saw Lauren’s face, though, her shoulders dropped before she placed her head into her hands. “Bo?”

“Kenzi was kidnapped,” she whispered, “because of me.” Reaching forward, Lauren wrapped her arms around her and pulled the woman back onto the bed completely as she held onto her. Slowly, she felt Bo wrap her arms around Lauren, seeking comfort at what had happened. 

“It wasn’t your fault,” she assured. 

“It was though. It happened because of what I did last night with Dyson and Hale, and because I...” she trailed off, realizing what she was about to say.

“Came here.” Lauren finished.

“It’s not like that,” Bo tried to begin as she pulled away, “I mean, I liked being here with you, I really liked it, but-”

“You don’t have to explain,” Lauren said, trying to be understanding, but even Bo could see that she’d hurt her, “if you hadn’t come here, you would have gone and picked up Kenzi, taken her home and been there when they tried to kidnap her. I get it.” Bo dropped her head guiltily, trying her best not to show how much she regretted coming to Lauren the night before.

But she could see the regret clearly and a selfish part of Lauren wanted to kick Bo out and refuse to talk to her until she apologized. But Lauren knew that now was not the time to be selfish, not with Bo. And there was no point doing that anyway. Bo would never mean the apology because this, this was about Kenzi. Lauren could pretend all she liked, but Kenzi would always be the first person in Bo’s life.

“Any other night,” Bo whispered, “everything would have been perfect.”

“But we’re not, are we?” Lauren replied, “Something will always come between us.”

At the bitterness, Bo grabbed Lauren’s hand and searched her eyes for comfort, “but it doesn’t mean we should stop trying, it just means that we have to try again later...doesn’t it? Isn’t there some saying...if you repeat an experiment enough times, the results will change?” Lauren smiled regardless of the situation. The metaphor was completely wrong of course, there were outlier results but that was more complicated than what Bo was saying -- which was also kind of cheesy. But Bo’s heart was in the right place.

Instead of correcting her, she leant forward and kissed Bo’s lips gently before slowly pulling away, “Go. Rescue Kenzi. I’ll be here if you need me.”

“I don’t know where to begin,” she admitted. Lauren took in a breath at the comment. That was why Bo hadn’t rushed off. She didn’t know where to start looking, or to even begin to comprehend the fact that Kenzi was missing. So instead she had remained with Lauren, in the hopes of finding the answer there.

Slowly, Lauren reached forward and cupped Bo’s face, tracing her thumb along her cheek, “this is what you do, Bo. You find people. Pretend that it isn’t about Kenzi and instead about finding a missing person.” Bo’s mouth went to open before Lauren pressed her thumb against it. “I know you need Kenzi right now, I know you’re lost, but this happened before remember? With Baba Yaga. And even though you were lost then, you got her back. This time will be no different.” 

Bo’s hand reached up and grabbed at Lauren’s wrist as she slowly nodded. Her eyes glimmered in the light, brimming with tears but refusing for them to fall. Lauren smiled at her again and allowed her hand to drop and run down Bo’s body. 

“Now think, where do you usually start?”

“I...I need to go to the Dal,” Bo said as her mind began to focus.

Lauren smiled, almost proud of Bo’s strength and ability. “I’d suggest going home first. Your clothes are in no condition for another fight if you get into one.” Bo nodded and rose off the bed, “Do you know who took Kenzi?” Lauren asked as Bo went to take a step towards the door.

“Yeah, the guys from last night I think. I’ll talk to Trick, see if he saw anyone and then I’ll see if I can get any information about where they’re hiding.” She gave Lauren another smile before she headed towards the door. This time, Lauren hoped, it wouldn’t be a near death experience to get Kenzi back. She’d rather not have Bo go through that ordeal again. But she knew without a sliver of doubt that Bo would do it all again just as easily, if she knew Kenzi would be back in the clubhouse by sundown.

“Come back safely,” Lauren said as she watched Bo leave. Her voice suddenly got the better of her and spoke without conscious thought, “I...need to talk to you about something I’ve been meaning to tell you for a while.”

The succubus paused at the doorway and turned to face her with a shaky smile, “I’ll do my best. I’d like to have that conversation too, I think.” 

Lauren smiled. “Me too.” 

There was a pause before Bo dropped her eyes and shuffled her feet momentarily. “Lauren?” she called.

“Yes?”

“Thank you.”

There was something in those words that Lauren feared, they sounded too close to ‘goodbye’ for her liking. She paused, staying in the bed until she heard the sound of her front door opening then closing behind her succubus.

The apartment became too quiet after that. Lauren couldn’t bring herself to do anything but drag herself to the shower and clean up the mess the two of them had made. Eventually she was able to calm herself and eat something that could be described loosely as breakfast, before she busied herself with research by burying her mind in it.

Until Bo brought back something, or asked for her help, there was nothing she could do to help. However, regardless of how she tried to research, her mind kept wandering. 

There was something about the knowledge that they’d kidnapped Kenzi that made Lauren worry so much for Bo. If there were drugs involved, who knew what the men were capable. Bo had been lucky catching them off guard last night, but quick retaliation gave the sense that they were more than just ‘well prepared’.

Giving in, Lauren grabbed her phone and quickly dialed the only person she knew would have all the knowledge that Bo had been oblivious to. 

“Lauren.” There wasn’t a question, just a statement that it was her on the line. Resisting to grind her teeth, she took in a breath and began.

“I want you to tell me everything that happened.”

“Sorry?” Lauren glared at the wall, her fingers buried into the depths of her pants pocket as her other hand clung to the phone. There was no doubting that Dyson knew exactly what she wanted, the way he all but laughed proved that.

Taking in a small breath, Lauren found her calm easily. No one got under her nerves like Dyson, not even Kenzi’s ‘Dr Freeze’ comments, but there was no winning in losing her cool to him. “I need to know what mess Bo got herself in,” she stated, “If they’ve captured Kenzi, then Bo needs everyone to work as quickly and efficiently as they can and for this I need you to tell me everything. I need to know what type of area the three of you found them in, I need to know the drugs they were using, I need samples, but mostly I need to know what type of fae they were. If Bo goes up against them and they’re prepared...”

“So, she was with you last night?”

“That’s none of your business,” Lauren snapped, despite herself.

Dyson chuckled regardless of the situation. Finding a way to wind Lauren up always gave him some humor. “Funny, that’s what she said to me this morning.”

“I know, I was in bed with her when that happened,” Lauren replied rather smugly. When Dyson didn’t reply, she couldn’t help but grin before she snapped back to the matter at hand, “Now, tell me everything.” She hated that she had to repeat herself, and loathed how Dyson was enjoying riling her up, but even though she’d managed to point out rather crudely what he was missing out on, she found only small satisfaction in it.

Any other day, she would make a point to hold onto the memory of Dyson’s bitter silence…but not today. Today even that silver lining would have to wait.

“I’m not looking for a fight, Lauren. I want to find Kenzi just as much as you do. Bo needs her, she’ll fall apart without her.” 

Nodding into the receiver, Lauren managed to say, “I know.” But what Dyson said, they both knew, didn’t touch on what would truly happen if the fae were to harm Kenzi. Nothing would ever be able to stop Bo from going rogue and taking vengeance. “Please Dyson. I just want to help, for Kenzi...for Bo.” 

“Of course.” He paused briefly, “I know this situation isn’t to be taken lightly, but I have strong faith that Bo will get her back.” At the passive-aggressive attack, Lauren felt cold anger run down her spine.

“As do I,” Lauren defended, “she went up against a Garuda and won, not to mention everything else she’s gone through, but sitting around, doing nothing and just waiting for Bo to come back with Kenzi, isn’t going to help her or ourselves.” Lauren shut her eyes and sat down in the chair, “what if this time is different, Dyson? What if this time she gets into a fight and doesn’t win? Without Kenzi she’s even less rational, even more...”

Stupid, they both thought, but neither of them dared to say out loud, because as ‘stupid’ as Bo was, she came off rather clever at times, there was no doubting that, but she was stubborn, hard-head and noble. The latter being her greatest and worst attribute. 

“I know. I think that every time she goes out.”

Lauren smiled, “we should just keep her locked up, so she doesn’t get into any more trouble.”

“We should,” he agreed laughing, “but she’d kill us first.” Lauren laughed, smiling into the phone.

“I may not always agree with you Dyson, but I’m glad someone like you cares for her as much as I do,” she told him. It went quiet after words and instantly Lauren felt herself wonder if she should have said anything at all.

“You’re not so bad yourself Doc,” he replied honestly, “how about I bring the file over and tell you everything?”

“I think that would be best.”


End file.
